Manhattan Bancorp Completes Bank Acquisition

Manhattan Bancorp on Friday said that it completed its stock acquisition of Professional Business Bank.

The deal, first announced in November, merges two banks with combined assets of more than $406 million. Manhattan Bancorp, the El Segundo parent of Bank of Manhattan, is the surviving holding company, with shareholders of Pasadena’s CGB Holdings, Professional Business Bank’s holding company, owning more than half of the combined entity. Irvine investment banker and consultant Ed Carpenter’s Carpenter & Co. had a significant stake in both companies.

After the close of business on Thursday, Professional Business Bank shareholders received 1.79 shares of Manhattan Bancorp common stock for each share of Professional Business Bank they owned.

Terry Robinson, president and chief executive of Bank of Manhattan, becomes chief executive of the new bank, which keeps the Manhattan name. John Nerland, president and chief banking officer of PBB, becomes president.

“We look forward to providing continued excellent service to our existing customers, while at the same time steadily increasing our market share assisted by this transaction with increased capital, higher lending limits, an expanded market for our mortgage division and increased efficiencies,” said Robinson in a statement.

James B. Jones, Marshall V. Laitsch, Louis P. Smaldino and Michael A. Zoeller, previously directors of Professional Business Bank, have joined the board of Manhattan Bancorp and Bank of Manhattan.